Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1887-06-04
FOE FREE
Whist II Necessary to be Done to Securt
Whist Our Population Entities 1s to
InteFviewy With tho Mayor and Alder
~ q the Sidewalks, Street Number
Ing ard Naming Subjects.

nsa - the Sidewalks, Street Number
Ing ard Naming Subjects.
Among many other improvements pecef
say to the e~stabHshment of this city il
the eyes Of the world - anything else thai
mere mining camp, and which woul'
tend to define it's municipal rank anon
it, sister cities Of the country, the existene
OF . free delivery system by the postofic
ID imperative. To say nothing Of the COZ
venienee to every living soul in this city t.
be derived from the presence Of such a pop
ular accommodation, the fact OF the cit.
having the free delivery system at ono
places it upon . certain grade, proclaim
to the world it's extent and Importance q
q commercial center and commands respec
a. being officially recognized to contain q
least 10 1000 Inhabitants. The matter ha
been agitated by the p~ostoffice authorize
here, and last February an inspector wa
sent to make q report o n the fitness OF thu
city to be accorded 30 great a benefit. Tha
gentleman made his report to the author
ties in Washington, and as a sequence
thereto the
FOLLOWING LETTER WAS RECEIVED:
WASHINGTON, D. c., May 20, 1887.
To the Postmaster, Butte City, Mont:
SR-The Inspector who visited your of
fee in February last on the free delivery
service states that your sidewalks are moi
al paved, and that the names OF thu
streets are not up at intersections, anc
only q portion of the houses are mum
bered. Before the free delivery service cal
be established in your city these require
ments must be complied with. After the
completion OF the work mentioned you
will please promptly notify this Office.
Very respectfully.
First Assist. P. NJ. General.
Al public ventilation of individual opin'
ion upon q subject like this is the quickest
mode of reaching popular apprehension,
visits were paid by TIE MINER represent.
alive to some Of the members OF the City
Council and others from whom the follow.
ing expressions were obtained:
v. r. KENYON,
as chief municipal officer of the city, was
first visited and shown the communication.
In reply to what view lie took of the
matter he said: II shall not take any
special action myself. If the matter ia
presented to the Council, as I suppose it
will be, I will lay it before them. butt don't
think l shall urge it at all. The city can get
along this year without the free delivery
system. To do what the Postmaster Cen
eral wants would involve the city going to a
good deal of expense. We couldn't oblige
people to put down cross-walks without
grading those streets upon which they
would be put down. And we haven't got
the ean to do 80 now. The city is a few
Thousands in debt now and the Council
cannot contract a greater indebtedness
than $500 for any purpose and that would
be OF nc account. Crosswalks would have
to be put down and they are q very ex-
pensive item. So far as house-numbering
goes, Of course, that would be good thing
to property-holders themselves. Yes, we
have improvements worse needed than
free delivery system in the way of levers
and other matters"
J.E. 10y
thought it an eminently good thing to 60
ahead and comply with the requirements
Of tho Postmastsr General. There can be no
reason for not numbering and naming the
streets. The way city finances are now we
would not be justified in going to any great
expense. and he didn't see that 1T could 10
volve much. If other cities with a certain
number OF Inhabitants have it, there can
be no valid reason why We should not.
Better to d. 80 now than wait for reincor-
poration, taking in South Butte and other
wide lying districts, which would bankrupt
the city to lay down sidewalks.
j.. z. RICHARDS
did not think the expense worth the object
to BE- attained. The city treasury is not
in q condition to warrant it. If the city
limits were extended We would have to
establish a grade at once, raise gullies,
make cuts and fills that the population OF
Butte would not warrant. It would be
q very expensive procedure and one that
there could be no getting out of-once the
free delivery system were established.
He regarded it as simply a useless expendi.
ture without a solitary compromising
advantage in return.
JOHN JAHREIss,
on the contrary, received the idea with IA
vor amounting to enthusiasm. 1t would
be IN immense gain to the city, he thought.
It might be q slight cost to property-hold-
ers in the parts Of the city where side
walks would have to go down, but that
would increase the value of their property.
For one, he would assuredly vote for it.
II the city has the population for free de-
livery it ought to 60 to work and provide
necessary to procure it. There
would be some expense for grading, Ger
tainly, but the grade is everywhere estab-
lished, and it would be a benefit to the city.
To make such an improvement might cost
money, but any debt to be incurred would
be submitted to the property-holders first,
and il voted for that would settle it. So
far as numbering houses and naming
is concerned, that is something
that should be done anyway. We have
what passes for a city direc.
tory now, but who can find anyone in it
And no one ever will know where to find
anybody else definitely until this is done.
wM. owsLEY
was in favor of doing what the depart
required and had been for a long
time. It would have been done long ago,
but that the Council got stuck over the
OF numbering to pursue. The side
walks at present are in good condition as
in any city OF it's size. He was strongly
to the project all through. When
he was Mayor he pushed the sidewalk con-
struction and house numbering. The
was numbered five or six years ago,
but the changes since made have knocked
iii of that out. 1t wasn't done properly
then, but should be gone into now. There
never was any objection to having all
these things done by the Council; the only
question ever raised was az to how to 90
about house-numbering.
TON LAvELL
believed it an excellent idea when he heard
it, and thought we ought to have a free
delivery system in effect when it can be got
Ten 80 easily. Nodeubt upon the que .tion
II the propriety OF having the houses num-
osred. Every house ought to have a num-
Dor. and where there are vacant lots treat
hem a. being numbered too. He would
aver compelling having the sidewalks laid
vhere they are not down. The Council
ought to see it done at once so that the
rec delivery can be had without delay. He
or one would do all in his power, and
think it would involve tAe city in
expense that would not be perfectly
egitimate.
vt once expressed his unqualified approval
II the project and in favor of complying
With the requirements of the Postmaster
Generals letter. He thought the naming
49,